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FM urges to respond to Armenian threatening of Azerbaijan with nuclear bomb

23 May 2016 17:42 (UTC+04:00)
FM urges to respond to Armenian threatening of Azerbaijan with nuclear bomb

By Gulgiz Dadashova

The rise of war rhetoric in South Caucasus emerged as a significant signal that the regional peace and security is under threat. Armenia’s outrageous attacks on the Azerbaijani civilians in the frontline zones resonated internationally, gradually increasing the chances of a new war.

Turning a blind eye to decades of the occupation of Azerbaijani territory by Armenia and violation of elementary rights of over 1 million Azerbaijanis driven out from their native lands as a result of this aggression, the international community has more or less ignored the calls of Baku.

The renewed hostilities in early April showed that a constant ignorance of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and Armenian occupation has dangerous consequences for not only region, but undermines security of whole Europe as well.

The time has proved that it cannot go like this for long - the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict should be resolved and Azerbaijan’s lands should be liberated.

Azerbaijan's Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov, who addressed a meeting of the Foreign Ministers of Eastern Partnership countries in Brussels on May 23, once again emphasized that the withdrawal of Armenian armed forces from Azerbaijani territories should be ensured.

The recent escalation on the frontline has signaled that the status quo in the settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict may lead to violence and severe military clashes, said Mammadyarov.

"Everyone fed up with the status quo which is not reliable and remains unsustainable and unacceptable. Demilitarization and withdrawal of troops has to be ensured," he noted.

The two South Caucasus countries -- Azerbaijan and Armenia remain in a state of war since early 1990s when the latter staged a war against its neighbor.

Peace talks over the long-lasting Nagorno-Karabakh conflict that emerged over Armenia’s territorial claims against Azerbaijan are underway on the basis of a peace outline proposed by the Minsk Group co-chairs and dubbed the Madrid Principles. However, as Armenia continues to follow non-constructive position, the negotiations have been largely fruitless so far despite the efforts of the co-chair countries over 20 years.

The minister pointed out that moving beyond this situation by means of constructive negotiations can bring the desired peace and stability to the region.

"However, the statements threatening Azerbaijan with "dirty bombs" bears no indication of any intention of Armenia in this regard," said Mammadyarov.

Mammadyarov further added that Baku urged international community to closely scrutinize Armenia's disobedience to commitments taken under international conventions on non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction

"This is critically important in view of previous and recently discovered notorious criminal cases related to trafficking of radioactive materials from Armenia to potential third countries,” he said.

Following the April clashes, Armenia’s ex-PM, member of the country's Parliament Hrant Bagratyan, as well as Major-General Arkadi Ter-Tadevosyan have claimed that Armenia possesses nuclear weapon hinting at its possible use against Azerbaijan.

The claims follow the facts of nuclear smuggling from Armenia, which were mentioned in annual statistical reports of the IAEA Incident and Trafficking Database (IDTB), Database on Nuclear Smuggling, Theft, and Orphan Radiation Sources (DSTO), reports by NTI, SIPRI, and other open media source.

Armenia may be planning to spray nuclear waste from its Metsamor Nuclear Power Plant over the occupied territories of Azerbaijan in a horrific “dirty bomb” attack, experts warned recently.

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Follow Gulgiz Dadashova on Twitter: @GulgizD

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